Tonbridge and Malling council has defended its use of Greenbelt land for housing allocations in the borough's Local Plan.

The council had received a letter from the two Government inspectors tasked with examining the plan before allowing its adoption that was critical of both the council's dependence on just five major sites to meet most of its housing provision, and of its use of Greenbelt land, which the inspectors said had not been properly justified or the potential harm analysed.

But Cllr David Lettington, the cabinet member for strategic planning and infrastructure was insistent the inspectors' response did not toll the death knell for the plan as some opposition councillors had suggested. He said: "It is relatively commonplace for local authorities to rely on a few larger sites.

He said: "Large sites can produce the developer's contributions that can pay for new infrastructure, which is really important

"For example, the development at Borough Green will provide the new link road that the area has been waiting decades for.

"We think we have sound reasons for putting forward these sites as we do for the use of Greenbelt land."

Conceding that usually development on the Greenbelt would only be allowed in exceptional circumstances, he said: "Just because a site is in the Greenbelt doesn't necessarily make it high quality land.

"Some of the land we intend to use has already been despoiled by quarrying."

Cllr Lettington said that putting forward any plan was "very difficult." He said: "Nobody wants an excess of housing being built in their own area.

"However in our case a group of landowners have come together to offer proposals which we believe are deliverable and will deliver the required infrastructure.

"Everything we propose is compliant with the National Planning Policy Framework - the Government's planning regulations - we just have to explain that to the inspectors."

Cllr Lettington also pointed out that although the plan proposes building on some Greenbelt areas, it also proposes an extension of the Greenbelt in other parts.

Read more: All the latest news from Tonbridge